Automobile-radiator.



P. W. KEMPSTER.

AUTOMOBILE RADIATOR.

APPLICATION FILED APR.9,1913. j gllso Patented June 80,1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

WITNESSES ATTORNEY P. W. KEMPSTER.

AUTOMOBILE RADIATOR,

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 191s.

-Patented June 30, 1914.

2 SHIEBTS*SHEBT 2.

WITNSSES ,rrsgrfyd INVENTOR ATTORNEY lllNllllED @STATS ATNT l@.

PERRY 'WARD IKEMPS'ltllR/j0Fl PROPHETSTOWN, ILLINOIS'.

'auromonrmnnamaron s mll 1,6349# Application filed April 9, 1913. Serial No'.'760,060.

To all @chem 'it may concern.: l

Be it known that I, PERRY W. KEMPSTER,

a citizen of. the United States, yresiding at` Prophetstown, in the county `of Whiteside and State of Illinois, have invented a new and usefulv Automobile-Radiator, of 'which' the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to improvements 1n radiators for explosion engines ot automobiles, and 4its object is to provide a radiator which may be readily assembled or taken down with a minimum of labor.

It is customary to provide radiators in automobiles fonmaintaining the Water circulating through the water jacket of the engine at a suitably lowI temperature and it is -customary to locate such radiators at the Jfront of the hood, so that when the automobile is traveling there is a rush of air through the radiator structure serving tovabsorb the radiated heat and thereby accelerate the radia tion, the effect being sometimes augmented by the use of a fan. A prevalent type of radiator is made up of upper and lower headers connected together by numerous pipes usually standing upright and the radiator structure is inclosed in a casing giving an ornamental effect. It is customary to solder the pipes to the headers and even to solder` the casing to the. radiator structure,` so that in the event of injury of any kind or leakage, it is often a matter of some days labor and commensurate expense to repair suoli radiator, especially where the fault is with' some pipe or pipes inthe mid portion of the radiator. The numberv of pipes is large, and thereare often as many vas four rows ot' such pipes.

ln accordance with the present invention the structure is of a knock down character, that is the parts may be assembled or disconnected by the application or removal of a few screws or bolts, while at the same time leakage under normal conditions is wholly prevented. Should, however, leakage occur the defective pipe or pipes may be readily reached by only a partial dismantling of the structure a-nd the repairs may be made and the dismantledparts reassembled all Within a comparatively shorttime, say, within an hour, as against one or two or more days labor with radiators of the type almost universally'employed in the automobile art. A quite prevalent'cause of injury to radiators is. the freezing-of the water in-cold Weather, and then the pipes ywill4 burst meaning that with the prevalent style of radiators the whole structure must be laboriously dismantled and laboriously reassembled with proper repairs. Should suoli an accident occur with the radiator of the present invention skilled labor is not needed to make 'repairs nor is much time required and when the radiator is reassembled the tactthatrepairs have been made is not at all vapparent so far as appearance goes.

The invention will. be best understood from a consideration of the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, with the further understandinglthatwhile the drawings show a practical form of the invention, the latter isfnot confined to any strict conformity with the` showing of thel drawings but may be changed and modified so long as such changes and modifications mark no material departure from the salient features of the invention. y

In the drawings z-Figure l is an elevation of the improved radiator as viewed fronrin front, with some parts broken away and shown in section in different planes toward the rear. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. l. Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4 4: of Fig. l. Fig. 5 is a vertical section through two of the radiator pipes and adjacent parts drawn on a larger scale than the other figures to illustrate some details of the construction.

Referring to the drawings there are shown two platesl, 2 which may be of elongated rectangular outline and may be made of steel or other suitable material. Each of these plates near the ends is provided with lateral grooves 3 in one face constituting seats for the ends of corresponding end pieces 4 designed to determine the spacing apart of the top and bottom plates 1 and 2, and these end pieces 4 are provided near each end with webs 5 forming abutnients for engaging the adjacent faces of the top and bottom members l and 2 so that rocking of these parts upon the end plates or pieces 4 is prevented. The two top and bottom members 1 and 2 are held together by bolts 6 traversing said members adjacent the end plates 4' and preferably exterior thereto. Each plate l and 2 las 'numerous holes or passages 7v therethrou h, those of one plate matching those of the other, and these passages are countersunk at the opposite ends,

as indicated at 8..

Extending between the top and bottom plates 1 and 2 are pipes 9 each shouldered near the ends as indicated at 10 and beyond the shoulders 10 having `continuations 11 of reduced external diameter adapted to the passages 7 which may be smaller than the pipes, or the shoulders may be otherwise produced to, serve the purpose for which they are intended. The pipes 9 may be ar,n ranged in any l.suitable order, either in straight rows, as indicated, or staggered or in any way customary in the construction of automobile radiators. Considering the radiator as in position and standing upright, the plate or to member 1 has adjacentgto it but spaced rom its lower face a plate 12 and adjacent to but spaced from its upper face another plate 13, while the plate 2 has a plate 14 adjacent to but spaced from its upper surface and another plate 15 adjacent to but spaced from its lower surface. The plates 12 and 14 have passages 16 therethrough of a size .to be traversedby the ends 11 of the pipes or tubes 9, the plates 12 and14 abutting against the shoulders 10. Surroundingr each pipe or tube extension 11 between the respective plates 12 and 14 and the members 1 and 2are gaskets 17 entering the corresponding countersunk portions 8 and betweenl the plates 13 and 15 and the respective end members 1' and 2 are other gaskets 18 surrounding the tube extensions 11 and seating in the respective countersinks 8.

The plates 12 and 14 are held by the 'shoulders 10 against the gaskets 17 and force the latter into their seats because of the clamping together of thc end members 1 and 2 by the bolts G. The plates- 13 Yand 15 are traversed by stub bolts 19 'carried by the members 1 and 2 and nuts 20 on these stub bolts serve to hold the plates 15 against the gaskets 18 with sullicient pressure to force ythe gaskets into their respective seats. The

gaskets 17 and 18 may be of rubber or of any suitable material which under'the pressure employed will engage in the seats 8 and hug the tube extensions 11 in a manner to produce a fluid-tight joint between the tube extensions 11 and the, respective members 1 and 2.

Mounted on the top of the member 1 'is an upper header 21 of sufficient length and width to inclose all the upper ends of the tubes 9, the header 21 having peripheral flanges 22 for the passage of bolts 23 or other suitable means for securing the header to the plate or top member 1 andthe junction of the edge portions of the header 21 with the top mei'nber 1 may be made fluid tight by interposed packing 24. The header 21 is arch-shapeto conform tothe usual practice in. malringfthe upper portion. of the radiator archedi-'in agreement wit-h the customary form of the hood of the automobile, but, of course, the header 21 may be otherwise shaped. At the crown of the arch header 21 a filling tube25 is provided and this filling tube, as is customary, is supplied with a cap 26 usually screwed into place so as to be readily removable for the introduction of water into the header 2l so that this header constitutes a' water chamber communicatin with all the tubes 9.

Depending from the lower plate or member 2 is a lower-*header 27 having a marginal flange 28 for the passage of holding bolts 29 and between this liange and the under surface of the member 2 is packing 30. The header 27 is of a size to include the lower ends of all the tubes 9with which it freely communicates, so that the two headers 21 and 27 are in multiple communication by way of all the tubes 9 simultaneously. The header 27 is provided with aidrain valve 31 and with a pipe connection 32 for communication with the water jacket of the engine of the automobile and the header 21 is provided with a pipe connection A33 for a like purpose. The presence of the plate 13 necessitates an elongation of the extensions f 11 of the tubes 9 carrying them some little distance above the upper surface of the top member 1, so that there is a considerable body of water trapped in the header 21 should it be desirable at any time to drain the radiator by way of the valve 31. To` overcome this a pipe 34 leads through the top member 1 on a level with its upper surface to a low point, and this pipe is provided with a valve 35 by me'ans of which a relatively dead space within the header 21 may be drained, so that the entire radiator L may be wholly emptied of water when it is desired to drain the radiator.

To produce a finish it is customary to inclose the radiator structurev in a casing 36 extendingA around the sides of the structure and across the top thereof and having a front plate 37 hiding the radiator structure, while the plate 37 has a front opening covered by a grid or grating 3S of any suitable construction permitting the passage' of air to the tubes 9 in a multitude of small streams, so that when the vehicle is traveling a flow of air occurs through the grating 38 into engagement with the tubes 9, thus effectively cooling them. The grating may be made permanently fast to the front 37 of thc casing 36 and the latter may be secured to the top and bottom members 1 and 2 by screws 39 or in any other manner permitting ready' detachment.

lVhen the radiator is to be put into service the valves 81 and 35 are closed and the cap 26- is removed and water is poured through the tube or neck 25 until the level of water has risen into the header 21 to an appropriate heighttvliich should be above the upper ends of the extensions 11 of the tubes 9 and above the pipe 33. When the engine is running there is a circulation of water through Jdie radiator in the usual manner and on passing through the tubes 9 the heat radiated from these tubes is absorbed by the flowing air and the water is correspondingly chil-led, so that on its return to the engine it enters the latter in the `chilled condition and the lengine is thereby kept cool. Se far as the action of the radiator is concerned it is substantially that of radiators as ordinarily constructed. y

Suppose, however, that for some reason or other it should be necessary to make repairs as would be 'the ease should one or more of -the tubes 9 become damaged. In

order 'to' repair the radiator the water is drained therefrom, 'the cap 26 is removed and the screws '39 are also removed, whereupon the casing 36 may be taken away from the radiator exposing the interior thereto, and if it be desired to remove the radiator from the. automobile the pipes 32 and 33 are disconnected from the engine and the radiator is 'disconnected from its support on the automobile, after which the header 21 is readily removed by unfastening the bolts 23., thus exposing the plate 13. If the defect should be in the nature of a leak in any one of the tubes 9 where passingvthrough the plate or top member 1, then by removing the nuts 20 on the stub bolts 19 holding the plate 13 in place, the latter may be lifted from the tubes 9 and fromthe gaskets 8 engaged bythe plate 13, thus exposing all said gaskets. If it be one of the gaskets 18 which is defective, such gasket may be replaced by a new one at a cost of only a fraction of a cent and the plate 13 may be l replaced to be followed by the replacing of ist the parts already removed. lf the radiator is still fast to thenutomobile, it is then ready for the reintroduction of water and may then be put into service. Suppose, however,

that the body of one or more of the tubes 9 is defective and it becomes necessary to replace such defective tubes with others. Then in addition to removing the plate 13 the bolts G are disconnected and the end member or plate 1 is lifted from the upper extensions 11 of the tubes 9, together with all the gaskets above the plate 1. The gaskets 17 at the upper ends of the tubes 9 are now removed, whereupon'the plate' 12 may be lifted from the shoulders 10 on the upper ends of the tubes 9, after which the defective tubes 9 may be removed without disturbing the.

lower set of gaskets, although it may be found desirable to loosen up thepressure of these gaskets which may be done by removing the header 27 and easing up on the nuts 20 of the bplts 19 carried bythe end member 2. The new tubeor tubes" 9 are placed in position when the .parts mav be again assembled in reverse order to the dis'- assembling thereof and the radiator is again ready for service on being supplied with a suitable quantity of water.

Should it be desirable to completely dismantle the whole radiator, it may be done in a very short 'time and the radiator'can be reassembled in a. similarly short time. Any one familiar with the construction of the radiator ofthe present invention can dismantle and reassemble the radiator in, say, an Vhour or less, making such exchanges of perfect partsv for damaged parts as may be necessary. ln the prior forms of radiators for automobiles the joints are soldered and even the outer casing is soldered in place so that .te dismantle and reassemble a radiator is often the work of a day or more and requirles a skill not at all called for in the dismantling and assembling of the radiator of the present invention. Moreover, soldered joints are often unreliable and are the cause of leaks which mean the expenditure of per haps a day or more to overcome. In the present invention the joints are all more or less yielding, and are of a nature which prevents leakage even under the shocks and jars to which the radiator may be subjected when on an automobile in service.

1rWhat is claimed is :vy

1. An automobile radiator comprising spaced.l top and bottom members each with passages therethrough, tubes extending between the top and bottom members and each provided with an end extension of reduced 100 diameter to form a shoulder at the junction of the-reduced portion with the main portion of the tube, the reduced portion of the tube being adapted to a respective passage through a respective end member, packing 105 gaskets between the shouldered portions of the tubes and end members, a header carried by each of the top and bottom members in communication with the tubes, and means for the connection of the headers with an 110 automobile engine, the several named members of the radiator being connected by readily vremovable fastening devices to permit the entire or partial assembling or dismantling of the radiator.

2. An automobile radiator comprising spaced plates having spacing members between the end portions and connecting bolts also near the end portions, said plates being provided with matching perforations, tubes extending between the plates and having end continuations of less external diameter than the tubes forming shoulders at the junction of the eontinuations with the bodies of the tubes, perforated plates -at the ends of the tubes traversed by'said reduced Continuations and located on opposite sides of the first named plates, packing gaskets surrounding the tube extensions on opposite sides -of said first named plates and heldw thereto by said second named plates, readilyremovable means for holding said second tween the end portions and connecting bolts also near the end portions, said plates being provided with matching perforations, tubes extending between the plates and having end continuations of less external diameter than the tubes forming shoulders at the junction of thevcontinuations with the bodies of the tubes, perforated plates at the ends of the tubes traversed by said'reduced continuations and located on opposite sides of the first named plates, packing gaskets surrounding the tube extensions on opposite sides of said first named plates and held thereto by said second named plates, readily7 removable means for holding said second named plates on the sides of said first named plates remote from the bodies of the tubes, and headers secured to the first named plates on the faces thereof remote from the bodies of the tubes, the securing means being in the form of readily removable fastenings, and the radiator being provided witlran exterior casing including a front plate and grating, said last named casing being connected to the radiator by readily removable fastening devices.

havingV end continuations of less externalv diameter than the tubes forming shoulders at the junction of the continuations with. the bodies of the tubes, perforated plates at the ends of the tubestraversed by .said reduced` continuations 'and located on opposite sides of the first named plates, packing gaskets surrounding the tube extensions on opposite sides of said first named plates and' held thereto by said second named plates, readily removable means for lholding' said second named plates on the sides of the irst named plates remote from the bodies of the tubes, and headers secured to the first named plates on the faces thereof remote from the bodies of the tubes, the securing means being in the form of readily removable fastenings, and the radiator being provided with an exterior casing including a front plate and grating,

and connected to the radiator by readily ref movable fastening devices, the headers being each provided with draining means indi vidualthereto. l

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses,

PERRY WARD KEMPSTER.

Witnesses: y

SWAN W. LiNDQUIsT, HOWARD RAP?. 

